THE  PREEDMEN’S  BUREAU 


REPORTS 

OF 

GENERALS  STEELMAN  AND  FULLERTON 


VL  pi'iiA 

dAlI  ' 


ON  THE 


Condition  of  the  Freedmen’s  Bureau 


IN  THE 


SOUTHERN  STATES. 


Generals  Steedman  and  Fullerton,  the  Commissioners  appointed  by  the  President  to 
investigate  the  operations  of  the  Freedmen’s  Bureau  in  the  Southern  States,  have 
presented  the  following  report  for  the  States  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  t 


Wilmington,  N.  C.,  May  8,  1866, 

tlon.  E.  M.  Stamen,  Secretary  of  War: 

We  have  the  honor  to  report,  in  obedience  to  instructions  of  April  7  last,  directing- 
us  to  “inspect  and  report  upon  the  Freedmen’s  Bureau  in  the  military  departments 
of  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  South  Carolina,  Georgia,  Alabama,  Mississippi,  Florida* 
Louisiana,  Arkansas,  •  and  Texas,  ”  that  we  have  performed  that  duty  in  the  depart¬ 
ments  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina,  and  submit  the  following  report  of  oar  obser¬ 
vations.  We  deem  it  proper  to  communicate  the  result  of  our  inspection  in  these-. 
States  before  proceeding  further  in  the  performance  of  the  duty  assigned  to  us. 

It  has  been  our  endeavor  to  ascertain,  by  a  thorough  and  impartial  investigation, 
the  manner  in  which  the  Bureau  has  been  administered  and  conducted  in  these  depa  t- 
ments,  and  to  observe  the  effect  produced  by  it  upon  the  relations  between  the  white 
and  black  races.  In  pursuing  our  investigations  we  have  endeavored  to  arrive  at  the 
truth,  and  we  feel  that  we  have  succeeded  in  doing  so  by  thoroughly  examining  and 
conversing  with  representatives  of  all  classes  of  people,  white  and  black,  as  well  as 
officers  on  duty  in  the  military  service  and  in  the  Freedman’s  Bureau  in  said  States, 
We  have  visited  all  the  cities  and  towns  of  any  importance,  and  the  headquarters  of 
each  district  of  the  Bureau  in  Virginia  and  North  Carolina,  and  also  have  taken 
advantage  of  every  opportunity  to  converse  with  and  obtain  the  opinions  with  reference 
to  the  Bureau  of  citizens  whom  we  have  met  on  the,  streets,  at  the  hotels,  and  while 
travelling  on  the  cars. 


VIRGINIA. 


The  re  are  on  duty  in  Virginia  the  following  number  of  officers  in  the  military  serving* 
and  of  other  persons  employed  by  or  attached  to  the  Bureau:  One  colonel,  two  lieutenant 
colonels,  three  majors,  one  captain  and  commissary  of  subsistence,  nine  captains  and 
assistant  quartermasters,  nineteen  captains  of  the  line,  twenty-three  first  lieutenants, 
twenty  second  lieutenants,  two  hundred  and  thirty-three  civilian  employes,  classified 
and  payed  as  follows  : 

58  clerks  and  superintendents  of  farms,  paid  average  monthly  wages . „.$78  50 

12  assistant  superintendents,  paid  average  monthly  wages.... .  87  00 

1 63  laborers,  paid  average  monthly  wages  . . . . . . .  31  75- 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  enlisted  men  in  the  military  service  are  employed  as. 
orderlies,  guards,  &c.,  hut  we  were  unable  to  procure  the  number  of  those  so  employed- 
Nine  thousand  freedmen  received  rations  from  the  Bureau  in  the  month  of  December” 
last,  10,260  in  the  month  of  January,  and  9,938  in  February.  The  provision  ret-wwa® 
on  which  the  rations  were  issued,  show  : 


Men, 

Women. 

Children. 

Total , 

December . 

1,020 

2,789 

5,191 

9,000 

January _ _ 

1,215 

3,084 

5,961 

10,260 

February  cc 

1,324 

3,147 

5,467 

9.0381 

^  l  ^  l  & 


U‘cU 


2 


WHY  THE  NEGROES  NEED  ASSISTANCE. 

A  majority  of  the  freedmen  to  whom  this  subsistence  has  been  furnished  are' 
undoubtedly  able  to  earn  a  living  if  they  were  removed  to  localities  where  labor  could 
be  procured.  The  necessity  for  issuing  rations  to  this  class  of  persons  results  from, 
their  accumulation  in  large  numbers  in  certain  places  where  the  land  is  unproductive 
and  the  demand  for  labor  is  limited.  As  long  as ‘these  people  remain  in  tlie  present 
localities,  the  civil  authorities  refuse  to  provide  for  the  able-bodied,  and  are  unable  to 
care  for  the  helpless  and  destitute  among  them,  owing  to  their  great  number  and  the 
fact  that  very  few  are  residents  of  the  counties  in  which  they  have  congregated  during 
the  war.  The  necessity  for  the  relief  extended  to  these  people,  both  able-bodied  and 
helpless,  by  the  Government,  will  continue  as  long  as  they  remain  in  their  present  con¬ 
dition,  and  while  rations  are  issued  to  the  able-1  >died  they  will  not  voluntarily  change 
their  localities  to  seek  places  where  they  can  y  ure  labor. 

EVERYTHING  DEPENDS  IIP..*  .  THE  AGENTS. 

In  those  districts  of  Virginia  where  the  affairs  of  the  Bureau  have  been  faithfully  and 
impartially  administered  by  men  of  sound  judgment  and  discretion,  there  has  been  no 
conflict  between  the  agents  of  the  Bureau  and  the  citizens.  In  all  such  districts  the 
agents  are  acting  in  harmony  with  the  civil  officers  of  the  State,  and  are  assisted  and 
supported  in  the  performance  of  their  duties  by  the  citizens.  But  in  many  places 
where  the  agents  are  not  men  of  capacity  and  integrity  a  very  unsatisfactory  condition 
of  things  exist.  This  originates  in  the  arbitrary,  unnecessary,  and  offensive  inter¬ 
ference  of  the  agents  of  the  Bureau  with  the  relations  between  the  planters  and  their 
hired  freedmen,  causing  vexatious  delays  in  the  prosecution  of  labor,  and  imposing 
expense  and  costs  in  suits  before  themselves  of  trivial  matters  that  could  readily  be 
adjusted  by  the  friendly  advice  of  a  sensible  man.  The  effect  produced  by  the  action 
of  this  class  of  agents  is  bitterness  and  antagonism  between  the  whites  and  the  freed¬ 
men,  a  growing  prejudice  against  the  Government  among  the  planters,  and  expectations 
on  the  part  of  the  freedmen  that  can  never  be  realized.  Where  there  has  been  no 
such  interference  or  bad  advice  given  to  the  freedmen  by  the  agents  of  the  Bureau, 
there  is  a  growing  Reeling  of  kindness  between  the  races,  and  good  order  and  harmony 
prevail. 

,  SPECIMEN  OF  THE  DECISIONS  OF  THE  BUREAU. 

As  an  evidence  of  the  manner  in  ^hich  this  arbitrary  power  is  exercised,  we  would 
state  that  an  agent  of  the  Bureau,  presiding  in  a  freedmen’ s  court  in  Accomac  county, 
decided  a  question  of  title  to  land  as  follows  :  A  colored  man,  who  was  freed  twenty 
years  ago  by  his  master,  and  who  was  permitted  through  the  kindness  of  his  master  to 
make  his  home  on  the  plantation  wherever  he  choose,  set  up  a  claim  to  ten  acres  thereof 
around  a  cabin  in  which  he  had  lived  for  ten  years.  The  agent  decided  that  the 
colored  man  had  acquired  title  to  the  ten  acres  by  adverse  possession,  and  forbade  the 
owners  of  the  plantation  from  bringing  the  question  again  before  his  court,  or  any 
other  court,  on  pain  of  imprisonment. 

A  NEGRO  DIVORCE  CASE. 

These  agents  exert  the  widest  latitude  in  the  exercise  of  their  judicial  functions,  try¬ 
ing  questions  involving  title  to  real  estate,  contracts,  crimes,  and  even  actions  affecting 
the  marital  relation.  We  witnessed  the  trial  of  a  divorce  case  before  the  sub-agent  at 
Charlottesville.  The  trial  occupied  about  ten  minutes,  and  resulted  in  a  decree  of 
divorce. 

TRANSFERENCE  OF  THE  POWERS  TO  THE  MILITARY. 

The  Assistant  Commissioner  of  the  Bureau  for  Virginia  having  turned  over  to  the 
civil  courts  all  criminal  cases  in  which  freedmen  are  interested,  and  having  made 
preparations  also  to  turn  over  civil  cases,  thus  leaves  no  other  duty  lor  the  agents  of 
the  Bureau  to  perform  except  to  supervise  contracts  and  to  care  tor  the  aged,  infirm, 
and  helpless.  We  therefore  respectfully  recommend  that  the  services  of  the  officers 
of  the  Bureau  in  Virginia  be  dispensed  with,  and  that  their  duties  be  performed  by  the 
officers  commanding  the  troops  in  the  department.  Such  a  change  would  relieve  the 
Government  of  a  large,  and,  in  our  opinion,  wholly  unnecessary  expense  of  supporting 
a  superfluous  number  of  officers  and  employes,  while  the  duties  can  be  as  efficiently  and 
satisfactorily  performed  in  the  manner  in  which  we  have  suggested.  As  long  as  the 
Government  of  the  United  States  exercises  any  control  whatever  over  the  Southern 
States  not  exercised  in  the  other  States  of  the  Union,  so  long  the  presence  of  military 
force  will  be  indispensable.  The  presence  of  both  the  Bureau  and  military  force  is  un¬ 
necessary.  The  officers  commanding  the  troops  can  discharge  the  duties  now  per¬ 
formed  by  both  ;  but  the  officers  of  the  Bureau,  without  the  presence  of  the  troops, 
would  be  powerless  to  execute  even  their  own  orders. 


3 


PAST  SERVICES  OF  THE  BUREAU. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  in  the  chaotic  condition  in  which  society  was  left  in  the  en¬ 
tire  absence  of  all  civil  authority,  the  judicious  and  sensible  officers  of  the  Bureau,  sup¬ 
ported  by  the  military,  exercised  a  good  influence,  and  did  much  to  preserve  order  and 
assist  in  the  organization  of  free  labor.  The  restoration  of  civil  law,  and  the  recogni¬ 
tion  of  the  civil  rights  of  the  freedmen,  as  evidenced  by  the  changes  made  by  the 
Legislature  in  the  laws  of  Virginia — giving  them  the  right  to  hold  property,  to  sue  and 
be  sued,  and  to  testify  in  the  courts  in  all  cases  in  which  they  may  be  interested,  (a 
gratifying  proof  of  the  growing  feeling  of  kindness  toward  them  on  the  part  of  the 
whites ) — render  the  freedmen,  in  our  opinion,  perfectly  secure,  if  left  to  the  care  of 

the  law  and  the  protection  of  the  troops. 

# 

INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FREEDMEN. 

There  appears  to  be  a  contrariety  of  opinion  as  to  whether  the  effect  of  the  opera¬ 
tions  of  the  Bureau  on  the  freedmen  has  been  to  promote  habits  of  industry  or  idle¬ 
ness  among  them.  In  our  judgment  the  effect  produced  has  depended  wholly  on  the 
character  of  the  officers.  Prudent  and  industrious  freedmen  rarely  call  upon  the  Bu¬ 
reau  for  advice  or  assistance.  It  is  the  idle  and  worthless  who  look  to  it  for  support. 
Among  these,  however,  we  do  not  mean  to  include  the  infirm  and  helpless.  The  mass 
of  the  freedmen  have  an  idea  that  the  Bureau  possesses  some  mysterious  power  to 
serve  them,  and  that  if  they  fail  to  secure  such  a  livelihood  as  they  desire,  they  can  fall 
back  upon  it  with  a  certainty  of  support.  These  ideas,  it  will  be  readily  seen,  lessen 
their  efforts  to  procure  employment,  and  to  support  themselves  and  their  families. 
They  also  regard  the  existence  of  the  Bureau  as  evidence  that  the  Government  looks 
upon  the  white  people  of  the  South  as  their  enemies,  which  is  calculated  to  excite  sus¬ 
picion  and  bad  feeling  on  their  part. 

GENERAL  BROWN’S  ADMINISTRATION. 

The  Assistant  Commissioner  of  the  Bureau  for  Virginia,  Brevet  Brigadier  General  0. 
Brown,  is  laboring  faithfully  and  zealously  to  harmonize  and  protect  the  interests  of 
both  races.  We  discovered  no  hostility  among  the  white  people  of  Virginia  to  the 
education  of  the  freedmen.  In  several  localities,  more  especially  at  Lynchburg  and 
and  Charlottesville,  where  we  thoroughly  examined  into  this  subject,  the  people  were 
taking  much  interest  in  the  establishment  of  schools  for  their  education,  giving  as  a 
reason  for  their  efforts  in  this  direction  that  educated  labor  was  preferable  to  uneducated 
labor,  which  sentiment  we  believe  prevails  throughout  the  State. 


CONDUCT  OF  THE  OFFICERS. 

We  made  no  investigation  into  the  conduct  of  the  officers  of  the  Bureau  in  Virginia 
outside  of  their  official  duties. 


NORTH  CAROLINA. 


Having  completed  our  duties  in  Virginia,  we  proceeded  to  the  Department  of  North 
Carolina,  and  arrived  at  Raleigh  on  the  23d  of  April.  Here  we  saw  the  Assistant  Com¬ 
missioner  of  the  Bureau  for  said  State,  Colonel  E.  Whittlesey,  and  obtained  from  him 
the  following  information  as  to  the  number  of  military  officers  and  civilians  employed, 
and  the  number  of  freedmen  to  whom  rations  have  been  issued  since  the  first  of  Decem¬ 
ber  last  in  said  State  : 

Commissioned  officers  in  the  military  service  :  one  colonel,  one  lieutenant  colonel, 
two  majors,  seventeen  captains,  six  first  lieutenants,  eight  second  lieutenants,  one 
chaplain. 

M EDICAL  DEPARTMENT. 


9  contract  surgeons,  at  per  month . . • .  $100  00 

26  hospital  attendants,  at  average  pay  each  per  month . •  ••••  11  2 a 

19  civilian  employes,  clerks,  agents,  &c.,  at  an  average  pay  per  month  of....  77  20 

4  laborers,  at  an  average  pay  per  month  of . 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  enlisted  men  are  detailed  as  orderlies,  guards,  &c.,  by 
commanding  officers  of  the  different  military  posts  where  officers  of  the  Bureau  are 


serving. 

Rations  have  been  issued  as  follows  : 

December . . 

January . 

February . 

March . 


Men. 

Women. 

Children. 

Total . 

513 

2,465 

3,679 

6,662 

552 

2,567 

3,712 

6,831 

369 

2.270 

3,507 

5,146 

321 

2,205 

3,406 

5,932 

4 


The  same  reasons  that  exist  for  issuing  rations  to  the  Freedmen  of  Virginia,  and  the 
necessity  for  the  continuance  of  this  relief,  apply  to  Freedmen  of  North  Carolina. 

FEELING  TOWARDS  THE  BUREAU. 

We  found  the  feeling  towards  the  Bureau  much  the  same  as  that  already  stated  as 
prevailing  in  Virginia,  except  that  there  appears  to  be  a  more  universal  desire  in  this 
department  on  the  part  of  all  classes  to  have  it  removed.  This  feeling  is  no  doubt 
attributable  to  the  misconduct  of  many  of  the  officers  of  the  Bureau,  such  as  working 
plantations,  running  saw-mills,  manufacturing  turpentine  and  tar,  &c.,  operations 
which  bring  them,  armed  with  authority  of  their  official  positions,  into  competition 
with  the  citizens  who  are  employing  Freedmen. 

CONDUCT  OF  THE  AGENTS.  JF 

We  have  investigated  some  of  the  charges  made  against  agents  of  the  Bureau,  and 
in  pursuing  our  inquiries  on  this  point,  commenced  with  the  Assistant  Commissioner  4 

of  the  State,  Colonel  E.  Whittlesey,  to  whom  we  addressed  the  interrogatory:  “Do 
you  know  of  any  person  in  the  military  service,  now  on  duty  with  the  Freedmen’ 3 
Bureau  in  this  department,  who  is,  or  has  been  since  entering  upon  the  duties  of  his 
office,  engaged  or  interested,  either  directly  or  indirectly,  in  the  cultivation  of  any  lands 
within  the  department?”  He  answered,  “No.”  Subsequently,  he  addressed  us  a 
note,  hereto  appended,  in  which  he  stated  that,  in  order  to  assist  the  planters  in  hiring 
Freedmen  and  trying  fairly  the  experiment  of  free  labor,  he  and  some  other  officers  of 
the  Bureau  had  loaned  money,  and  thus  indirectly  had  an  interest  in  cultivating  farms. 

On  receiving'this  note,  we  addressed  Colonel  Whittlesey  further  interrogations,  a  copy 
of  which  is  hereto  annexed,  to  which  he  replied  in  a  communication,  also  hereto 
appended,  disclosing  the  fact  that  he  is  interested  as  an  equal  partner  with  the  Rev. 

Horace  James,  of  Massachusetts,  formerly  Captain  and  Acting  Quartermaster  Freed- 
men’s  Bureau,  and  with  Mr.  Winthrop  Tappan,  of  Maine,  in  the  cultivation  of  a  large 
farm  in  Pitt  County,  North  Carolina,  He  also  stated  therein  that  Captain  F.  A.  See¬ 
ley,  Superintendent  of  the  Bureau  for  the  Eastern  District,  North  Carolina,  is  inte¬ 
rested  in  the  cultivation  of  a  plantation  in  Wayne  County,  North  Carolina,  with  a  Mr. 

Potter,  and  that  Captain  Isaac  Rosekranz,  Commissary  of  Subsistence,  is  interested 
with  a  Mr.  Brooks  in  the  cultivation  of  a  plantation  in  Pitt  County,  North  Carolina. 

A  BRIGHT  EXCEPTION. 

From  Raleigh  we  proceeded  to  Salisbury,  where  we  found  Major  Clinton  A.  Cilley, 
Superintendent  in  the  Bureau,  having  Charge  of  the  Western  District,  embracing  fifty- 
one  counties  of  the  State.  This  efficient  and  competent,  officer  has  administered  the 
affairs  of  the  Bureau  within  his  district  with  much  ability  and  impartiality.  We  con¬ 
ferred  with  the  leading  white  citizens,  embracing  both  those  who  had  formerly  been 
Rebels  and  those  who  had  been  Union  men,  and  also  with  a  delegation  of  intelligent 
colored  people  representing  the  Freedmen,  all  of  whom  agreed  in  the  statement  that 
the  Freedmen  were  at  work,  were  perfectly  satisfied,  and  that  good  feeling  and  har¬ 
mony  prevailed  between  the  whites  and  blacks  throughout  the  district.  Major  Cilley 
is  not.  interested  in  the  cultivation  of  any  plantation,  or  in  any  other  business  not 
directly  connected  with  his  official  duties,  and  he  has  prohibited  all  officers  serving 
under  him  within  his  district  from  engaging  in  any  enterprise  which  would  enable 
them  to  appropriate  or  control  the  labor  of  Freedmen  under  their  jurisdiction  to 
advance  their  private  interests.  We  attribute  much  of  the  order  and  contentment  of 
the  Freedmen  in  the  Western  District  to  Major  Cilley’s  judicious  and  honest  admin¬ 
istration,  t 

•  BACK  TO  RALEIGH.  | 

After  completing  eur  inspection  of  the  operations  of  tiie  Bureau  in  Major  Cilley’s 
district,  we  returned  to  Raleigh,  where  we  remained  one  day  for  the  purpose  of  further  f 

interview  with  Colonel  Whittlesey ;  but,  he  being  absent,  we  were  obliged  to  address 
him  certain  interrogatories  in  writing,  to  which  he  afterwards  replied  as  before  stated. 

AFFAIRS  AT  NEWBERN. 

On  the  27th  of  April  we  left  Raleigh  for  Newheim,  the  headquarters  of  Captain  F. 

A .  Seeley,  Superintendent  of  the  Bureau  of  the  Eastern  District  of  North  Carolina. 

We  at  once  proceeded  to  investigate  the  affairs  of  the  Bureau  and  the  conduct  of  its 
off  oers  in  this  district.  Captain  Seeley  was  interrogated  as  to  whether  he  was  inter¬ 
ested  in  any  manner,  directly  or  indirectly,  in  the  cultivation  of  lands,  or  in  any  other 
private  business  requiring  the  labor  of  Freedmen.  He  answered  that  lie  was  not, 


0 


except  indirectly  in  manufacturing  lumber,  having  purchased,  or  being  about  to  pur¬ 
chase,  with  two  of  his  clerks,  a  saw-mill  about  forty  miles  down  the  river.  Dr.  Rush, 
Medical  Purveyor?  U.  S.  V.,  stationed  at  Newbern,  and  a  Mr.  Potter,  a  citizen,  were 
subsequently  examined,  both  of  whom  stated  that  Captain  Seeley,  Superintendent  of 
the  Freedmen’s  Bureau  for  the  district,  entered  into  partnership  with  them,  about 
December  last,  in  a  contract  to  cultivate  the  farm  of  Mr.  George  Collier,  a  citizen  of 
North  Carolina,  near  Goldsborougli.  They  commenced  operations  by  planting  seven 
hundred  acres  of  cotton  and  some  corn,  this  work  necessarily  requiring  the 
labor  of  a  large  number  ot  Freedmen.  Dr.  Rush  stated  that,  some  two  weeks 
since,  he  had  conditionally  purchased  the  interest  of  Captain  Seeley  in  his  plantation, 
but  had  not  yet  consummated  the  contract.  Mr.  Potter  stated  that  about  a  fortnight 
ago  Dr.  Rush,  he  himself,  and  others  had,  conditionally,  purchased  a  part  of  the  in¬ 
terest  of  Captain  Seeley,  and  that  Captain  Seeley  still  owned  an  interest  in  the  planta¬ 
tion.  Without  being  able  to  determine  from  the  testimony  how  far  Captain  Seeley  is 
interested  in  this  plantation,  it  is  perfectly  evident  that  he  prevaricated  in  his  answer 
to  our  interrogatory. 

FURTHER  MISCONDUCT.  ' 

Captain  Rosekranz,  sub-agent  of  the  Bureau  at  Newbern  under  Captain  Seeley,  and 
commissary  of  subsistence,  as  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  paper  hereto  attached, 
is  also  engaged  in  cultivating  a  large  plantation  near  Little  Washington,  N.  C.,  with 
the  labor  of  freedmen,  whom  he  supplied  with  rations  as  a  part  of  their  wages. 

MISSING  RATIONS. 

In  one  of  our  interviews  with  the  freedmen  at  Newbern  some  of  them,  who  were  em¬ 
ployed  in  the  Commissary  Department  of  the  Bureau,  stated  that  rations  in  bulk  had 
been  frequently  taken  from  the  supply  warehouse  at  unusual  hours,  before  the  doors 
were  opened  for  the  transaction  of  business,  and  hauled  off  in  carts  and  wagons,  and 
that  on  one  occasion  they  had  followed  a  cart  containing  four  barrels  of  pork,  to  see  if 
it  went  to  the  freedmen’s  ration  house.  They  ascertained  that  it  did  not.  We  inves¬ 
tigated  this  particular  case.  Captain  Rosekranz  stated  that  he  knew  nothing  about  it. 
His  brother,  a  citizen,  whom  he  had  employed  to  act  as  a  commissary  sergeant,  stated 
that  the  four  barrels  of  pork  alluded  to  were  ordered  by  himself*,  to  be  taken  from  the 
store-house  to  the  building  from  which  rations  were  issued  to  the  freedmen,  but  that 
the  driver  of  the  cart  had  made  a  mistake  and  took  the  pork  to  the  Wrong  place,  a  pro¬ 
vision  store  kept  by  Mr.  P.  Merwin,  and  that  immediately  on  discovering  the  mistake 
he  had  it  rectified  and  the  pork  returned  to  the  store  house.  Afterwards  we  called 
upon  Mr.  Merwin,  who  stated  that  at  about  the  time  Mr.  Rosekranz  said  the  pork  had 
been  sent  by  mistake  to  his  store  he  borrowed  four  barrels  of  pork  from  Captain  Rose¬ 
kranz,  which  he  had  not  yet  returned.  He  also  stated  that  Captain  Rosekranz  on  that 
day,  and  after  his  examination  before  us,  called  at  his  store  and  requested  him  to 
return  the  four  barrels  of  pork  immediately.  Mr.  Merwiq  lurther  stated  that  he  had 
exchanged  with  Captain  Rosekranz  two  barrels  ot  brown  sugar  tor  two  barrels  ot  white 
sugar,  and  paid  Captain  Rosekranz  five  cents  per  pound  tor  making  the  exchange. 

THE  CRUELTIES  OF'  REV.  MR.  FITZ. 

Opposite  Newbern,  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Trent  river,  there  is  a  settlement  com¬ 
posed  exclusively  of  freedmen,  and  containing  a  population  of  about  four  thousand, 
whose  condition  is  truly  deplorable,  lliese  unfortunate  people  came  within  our  lines 
and  were  located  there  during  the  war.  They  are  living  in  small  huts,  built  by  thern- 

*  selves  of  lumber  manufactured  by  hand  ;  these  huts,  generally  containing  but  a  single 
room,  each  of  which  is  occupied,  in  most  cases,  by  large  families.  The  appearance  of 

*  this  settlement,  recently  scourged  with  the  small-pox,  is  well  calculated  to  excite  the 
deepest  sympathy  for  the  helpless  condition  of  its  inhabitants.  1  he  decrepid  and 

f  helpless  among  them  are  supported  by  the  Government  ot  the  United  States,  and  the 

remainder  procure  an  uncertain  and  scanty  living  from  little  jobs  about  Newbern—- 
from  fishing  from  small  boats,  huckstering,  &c.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Fitz,  formerly  an  army 
chaplain,  presides  over  this  colony  as  assistant  superintendent  of  the  Bureau  for  the 
Trent  river  settlement.  This  agent  lias  exercised  the  most  arbitrary  and  despotic 
power,  and  practiced,  revolting  and  unheard-of  cruelties  on  the  helpless  treedmen  under 
his  charge.  The  outrageous  conduct  of  this  man  was  brought  to  our  attention  by  a 
delegation  of  freedmen  from  the  settlement,  who  called  upon  us  and  made  statements 
in  relation  to  his  oppressions  and  outrages  which  we  could  scarcely  credit,  Aite. 
hearing  their  statements  we  visited  the  settlement,  convened  the  freedmen,  investiga-i 
ting  the  charges  against  this  man,  and  ascertained  that  he  had  been  guilty  ot  e.  en 


6 


greater  wrongs  and  oppressions  than  had  been  complained  of.  In  addition  to  the  tes¬ 
timony  of  the  freedmeu,  we  took  the  statements  of  four  intelligent  ladies  from  the 
North,  who  are  teaching  school  in  the  settlement.  Among  the  many  acts  of  cruelty 
committed  by  Superintendent  Fitz,  we  found  that  he  had  in  two  instances  suspended 
freedmen  with  cords  around  their  wrists,  their  feet  not  touching  the  floor,  and  kept 
them  in  this  position,  in  one  case  four,  in  the  other  case  six  hours  ;  that  he  sentenced 
a  freedman  to  an  imprisonment  of  three  months  for  a  trivial  ofl'ence — that  of  wrangling 
with  his  wife.  He  kept  another  man,  who  was  arrested  for  debt,  shut  up  in  the  black 
;h0USe — the  prison — for  months,  while  his  wife  and  children,  reduced  to  abject  destitu¬ 
tion,  died  with  the  small-pox,  and  took  him  from  the  prison  under  guard  and  compelled 
him  to  bury  his  last  child  in  the  cradle  in  which  it  died.  On  another  occasion,  when 
one  of  his  guards  reported  to  him  that  a  colored  woman  had  spoken  disrespectfully  of 
him,  without  even  inquiring  what  the  woman  had  said,  he  ordered  her  to  be  im¬ 
prisoned  until  the  next  morning  at  nine  o’clock,  when  she  would  be  brought  before 
him  to  answer  for  the  indignity.  In  one  instance  he  imprisoned  six  children  for  ten 
days  for  playing  in  the  streets  on  the  Sabbath  day.  He  imposed  a  fine  of  sixty  dollars 
upon  an  aged  freedman  for  having  told  another  freedman  that  he  was  about  to  be 
arrested  by  Mr.  Fitz.  This  poor  old  man  not  having  the  money  to  pay  the  fine,  was 
imprisoned  until  the  next  day,  when  his  son  paid  the  same,  with  three  dollars 
additional  as  jail  fees. 

FITZ’S  TAXES. 

The  land  upon  which  the  huts  in  this  settlement  are  built  is  owned  by  certain  heirs 
in  North  Carolina,  ahdis  held  by  the  Freedmen’s  Bureau  as  abandoned  property.  A 
tax,  which  Superintendent  Fitz  says  goes  to  the  support  of  the  Bureau,  is  imposed 
upon  the  owner  of  each  hut  for  ground  rent.  If  the  occupants  fail  to  pay  this  tax 
promptly,  they  are  either  turned  out  into  the  streets  or  imprisoned,  and  in  some 
instances  huts  have  been  torn  down  by  order  of  the  Superintendent  for  non-payment  of 
the  tax.  All  business  transacted  by  these  people  are  taxed  for  the  same  purpose.  Five 
|  dollars  per  month  are  levied  upon  every  little  shop ;  two  dollars  on  each  fishing-boat ; 
five  dollars  on  each  horse  and  cart,  &c.  The  failure  to  pay  those  taxes  when  due  at  once 
subjects  the  property  taxed  to  confiscation.  We  were  unable  to  obtain  what  amount 
of  money  had  been  collected  by  Superintendent  Fitz,  or  what  disposition  had  been 
made  of  it.  The  imperfect  manner  in  which  the  books  were  kept  would  have  rendered 
a  lengthy  and  detailed  examination  necessary  to  arrive  at  even  an  approximate  idea  of 
the  amount  of  money  collected.  In  answer  to  a  question  as  to  what  justification  there 
was  for  the  oppressive  burdens' he  had  imposed  upon  these  people,  Superintendent 
Fitz  replied  that  Captain  Seeley  told  him,  “  I  must  have  a  thousand  dollars  a  month 
from  that  settlement.”  He  also  furnished  us  with  a  sworn  statement,  herewith  for¬ 
warded,  marked  “  E,”  in  which  he  attempts  to  defend  his  conduct  by  stating  that  he 
acted  in  obedience  to  the  orders  of  his  superior  officers  in  the  Bureau. 

4 

CAPTAIN  SEELEY  SCREENING  HIS  SUBORDINATES. 

In  an  interview  we  had  with  Captain  Seeley,  that  officer  evinced  a  desire  to  shield 
Superintendent  Fitz  by  stating  that  a  great  deal  of  what  was  said  against  him  resulted 
from  prejudice,  notwithstanding  he  had  the  sworn  testimony  before  him  that  the  charges 
against  Fitz  were  true. 

BUREAU  OFFICERS  SHOOTING  DOWN  A  FREEDMAN. 

While  at  Newbern  investigating  the  conduct  of  the  officers  of  the  Bureau,  and 
the  reported  oppressions  of  the  freedmen,  by  this  class  of  persons,  our  attention  was 
called  to  the  alleged  killing  of  a  freedman  by  a  white  employe  of  Colonel  Whittlesey, 
Assistant  Commissioner  of  the  Bureau  for  North  Carolina,  and  the  Rev.  Horace  James, 
formerly  assistant  quartermaster,  on  their  plantation  in  Pitt  county.  Mr.  James,  while  * 
in  the  United  States  service,  was  superintendent  of  the  Bureau  for  the  district  now 
under  charge  of  Captain  Seeley,  and  is  now  an  agent  of  the  Bureau,  without  pay,  for 
the  county  in  which  he  is  planting.  The  circumstances  under  which  this  freedman  was 
killed,  as  stated  by  Mr.  James  himself,  were  as  follows  :  The  freedman  was  accused  of 
stealing  provisions  from  the  store  of  Colonel  Whittlesey  and  Mr.  James,  was  arrested, 
tried,  and  convicted  by  Mr.  James  as  agent  of  the  Bureau,  and  was  sentenced  to  dig 
ditches  on  their  plantation.  While  working  out  this  sentence  he  ran  away,  and  was 
pursued  by  James  and  his  clerk,  Boyden,  who  arrived  at  the  bank  of  a  river  while 
the  treedman  was  attempting  to  cross  in  a  canoe.  Boyden  ordered  him  to  return,  tell¬ 
ing  him  that  if  he  did  not  he  would  shoot,  and  the  freedman  disregarding  this  order, 
Boyden  fired.  Boyden  states  himself  that  he  thinks  he  hit  him,  and  as  nothing  has 


7 


ever  been  heard  of  the  freedman  since,  it  is  generally  believed  in  the  neighborhood 
that  he  was  killed  and  fell  from  the  canoe  into  the  river.  These  facts  were  stated  in  a 
letter  forwarded  to  Colonel  Whittlesey,  who  returned  it  to  Captain  Seeley  with  the  fol¬ 
lowing  endorsement : 

Raleigh,  March  28,  1866. 

Respectfully  returned,  as  the  affair  seems  to  have  occurred  at  night,  and,  as  the  body 
of  the  negro  has  not  been  discoved,  it  does  not  appear  certain  that  the  shot  took  effect. 
No  further  action  in  the  case  seems  to  be  called  for. 

By  order  of  Colonel  WHITTLESEY, 

Assistant  Commissioner. 

Beecher,  Assistant  Adjutant  (Jeneral. 

A  number  of  the  freedmen  at  Newbern  expressed  dissatisfaction  at  the  manner  in 
which  this  case  had  been  passed  over  without  investigation  ;  but  as  the  plantation  is 
quite  remote  from  any  public  line  of  communication,  we  were  unable,  owing  to  want  of 
time,  to  inquire  into  the  matter. 

AFFAIRS  AT  KINSTON. 

On  the  2d  instant  we  left  Newbern  for  Goldsboro,  and  on  the'way  stopped  at  Kinston 
long  enough  to  learn  that  Crptain  Wheeler,  agent  for  the  Bureau  at  that  point,  is  en¬ 
gaged  in  working  a  large  plantation  on  his  own  account,  and  employs  thereon  quite  a 
number  of  freedmen. 

MOKE  FARMING. 

At  Goldsboro’  the  superintendent,  G.  0.  Glavis,  chaplain  United  States  army,  is  culti¬ 
vating  one  farm  on  Government  account,  and  is  interested  in  cultivating  two  farms  on 
his  own  account.  This  officer  stated  in  his  examination  before  us  that  he  was  not 
interested  in  the  cultivation  of  plantations,  except  indirectly  by  loaning  money  to  a 
Mr.  Brooks,  a  friend  of  his  from  the  North,  who  was  engaged  in  planting  ;  but  we  ascer¬ 
tained  from  Mr.  Carr  and  Mr.  Lane,  citizens  of  the  vicinity  of  Goldsboro’,  that  he  is 
interested  and  joined  with  them  in  contracts  for  the  cultivation  of  their  plantations. 
He  and  his  friend  Mr.  Brooks  entered  into  a  contract  with  Mr.  Lane  to  furnish  rations  and 
pay  for  forty  laborers,  and  to  provide  eight  good  mules.  Mr.  Lane  offered  to  furnish  the 
land,  to  superintend  in  person  the  cultivation  thereof,  the  crop  to  be  equally  divided, 
one  half  to  Mr.  Lane  and  the  other  half  to  Mr.  Brooks  and  Glavis.  Mr.  Lane  states 
that  the  enterprise  failed  after  the  freedmen  had  worked  over  two  months  ;  they  then 
left  Brooks  and  Glavis,  having  failed  to  pay  them  according  to  contract.  The  Freed¬ 
men  received  for  their  labor  a  little  clothing,  such  as  coats,  pants,  shoes,  &c.,  furnished 
by  Captain  Glavis,  and  but  little  or  no  money.  A  similar  contract  was  made  by  Glavis 
and  Brooks  with  Mr.  Carr,  who  stated  to  us  that  Captain  Glavi  f paying  the  hands  in 

a  little  of  everything,  but  chiefly  in  clothing.”  „ 

SELLING  FREEDMEN ’S  CLOTHES. 

We  ascertained  by  the  testimony  of  Messrs.' Barham  &  Ballard,  Auctioneers  at  Golds¬ 
boro’,  that  they  had  sold  at  auction  for  Chaplain  Glavis  forty  blankets  marked  “  U.  S.,” 
and  a  quantity  of  clothing  that  had  been  sent  to  Goldsboro’  for  gratuitous  distribution 
to  the  needy  by  a  Freedmen’s  Aid  Society  at  or  in  the  vicinity  of  Rochester,  New 
York.  We  learned  also  that  he  had  disposed  of  a  large  amount  of  such  clothing  at 
private  sale.  The  Chaplain  stated  himself  that  he  had  received  from  such  sales  two 
hundred  and  sixty  dollars  ($260,  ^  though  subsequently  he  asserted  that  the  total  cash 
receipts  of  his  office,  from  all  sources,  amounted  to  one  hundred  and  twenty-six  dol¬ 
lars  and  fifty  cents  ($126.50. )  He  kept  no  books  or  even  memoranda  of  moneys  re¬ 
ceived  or  expended. 

THE  WILMINGTON  AGENTS. 

On  the  4th  instant  we  arrived  at  Wilmington,  the  Headquarters  of  the  Bureau  for 
the  Southern  District  of  North  Carolina,  of  which  Colonel  Rutherford  is  the  Superin¬ 
tendent.  The  Colonel  has  been  here  but  a  short  time,  and  is  not  yet  fully  acquainted 
with  the  operations  of  the  Bureau  in  his  District.  He  was  so  unwell  that  he  was 
obliged  to  retire  while  we  were  engaged  in  examining  his  office,  and  we  have  not  since 
conferred  with  him. 

Major  J.  C.  Mann,  Assistant  Quartermaster  and  Financial  Agent  of  the  Southern 
District,  is  engaged  in  the  cultivation  of  a  rice  plantation  a  short  distance  from  Wil¬ 
mington,  on  which  are  employed  fifty-five  freedmen.  The  Major  stated  that  while  lie 
would  not  object  to  making  money,  he  engaged  in  this  business  to  convince  the  South¬ 
ern  people  that  the  negro  would  work. 


ONE  WAY  OF  INDUCING  INDUSTRY. 


Major  Cliarles  I.  Wickersham,  Sul) -Agent  of  the  Bureau,  whose  Headquarters  are  at 
Wilmington,  is  also  interested  in  the  cultivation  of  a  rice  plantation  within  his  Sub- 
District,  and  he  is  to  receive  one-fourth  of  the  crops  from  the  same  for  compelling 
the  freedmen  employed  on  said  plantation  to  work  faithfully.  He  explained  the  man¬ 
ner  in  whch  he  compelled  freedmen  to  comply  with  their  contracts,  by  stating  that  he 
put  them  to  work  with  ball  and  chain  on  the  streets  of  Wilmington. 

EVILS  OF  THE  SYSTEM. 

Without  attempting  to  discuss  the  propriety  of  officers  of  the  Bureau  in  the  military 
service  of  the  United  States,  who  are  paid  by  the  Government  for  the  performance  of 
their  duties,  engaging  in  private  business,  and  employing  freedmen  for  such  purposes, 
while  controlling  through  their  official  positions  that  class  of  labor,  we  deem  it  our 
duty  to  state  some  of  the  effects  produced,  both  upon  the  officers  themselves  and  upon 
the  planters  with  whom  they  come  in  competition,  by  such  conduct.  Major  Wicker- 
sham,  in  contracting  to  furnish  forty  labors  to  work  on  a  rice  plantation,  becomes  at 
once  interested  against  the  laborers,  whom  he  compels  to  labor,  perhaps  unjustly, 
when  unfairly  dealt  with  by  the  person  working  them  on  the  plantation :  and,  on  their 
refusing  to  work,  he  inflicts  upon  them  unlawful,  and,  for  a  breach  of  contract,  unheard 
of  punishment,  putting  them  on  chain-gangs,  as  if  they  were  convicted  criminals. 
Colonel  Whittlesey,  or  any  other  officer  of  less  rank  and  influence  in  the  Bureau,  who 
is  engaged  in  working  plantations  rented  for  cash  or  on  shares,  becomes  interested  in 
securing  a  low  rate  of  wages  and  in  making  the  most  stringent  labor  regulations,  to  the 
great  detriment  of  the  freedmen.  They  thereby  give  the  sanction  of  the  Government 
to  the  establishment  of  wages  far  below  what  the  labor  is  really  worth.  Officers  of  the 
Quartermaster’s  and  Commissary  Departments  who  are  thus  engaged  are  subjected  to 
the  temptation  of  appropriating  to  their  own  use  Quartermaster’s  stores  and  rations  to 
supply  and  pay  their  own  laborers.  Complaints  have  been  made  to  me  by  the  planters 
that  these  Agents  of  the  Bureau  use  t|ie  power  of  their  positions  to  obtain  and  control 
the  best  labor  in  the  State.  There  is  no  doubt  that  some  of  the  ill-feeling  manifested 
toward  the  Bureau  on  the  part  of  the  planters  is  attributable  to  this  fact. 


ARBITRARY  POWER  OF  THE  BUREAU. 

The  arbitrary  power  exercised  by  some  of  the  Officers  and  Agents  of  the  Bureau  in 
making  arrests,  imposing  fines,  and  inflicting  punishments,  disregarding  the  local  laws 
and  especially  the  statute  of  limitations,  creates  prejudice  against  the  Government. 
If  the  Officers  were  all  honest  and  intelligent,  with  even  limited  legal  information,  it 
might  be  safe  to  trust  them  with  this  extraordinary  power  :  but  in  many  instances  the 
Officers  do  not  possess  the  slightest  knowledge  of  law.  At  Goldsboro’,  the  Agent, 
Captain  Glavis,  imposed  a  fine  of  $25  on  one  freedman  for  stabbing  another  so  severely 
as  to  endanger  his  life,  and  when  interrogated  by  us  relative  to  this  case,  he  stated, 
that  he  did  not  know  enough  about  law  to  distinguish  a  civil  from  a  criminal  case. 


THE  RECOMMENDATION. 

*  '#■  # 

We  are  satisfied  that  the  recommendation  which  we  made  in  reference  to  the  with¬ 
drawal  of  the  Officers  of  the  Bureau  in  Virginia,  and  the  transference  to  the  Officers 
commanding  the  troops  of  such  duties  as  it  may  still  be  necessary  to  perform  in  con¬ 
nexion  with  the  freedmen,  is  equally  applicable  to  North  Carolina. 

Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servants. 

JAS.  B.  STEED  MAN,  Ala,].  Gen.  Volunteers. 

J.  S.  FULLERTON,  Bruy.  Gen.  Volunteers. 


Augusta,  Ga.,  Friday  June  1,  1866. 

Hon ,  E.  M.  Stanton,  Secretary  of  War  : 

Sir:  We  have  the  honor  to  submit  the  following  report  of  our  inspection  of  the 
operations  of  the  Freedmen’s  Bureau  in  the  Military  Departments  of  South  Caroliua, 
Georgia  and  Florida,  and  of  the  condition  of  the  Freedinen’s  Settlements,  tbre  Sea 
Islands  and  Sea-coast,  under  General  Sherman’s  order  : 


9 


SOUTH  CAROLINA. 

We  did  not  visit  many  of  the  Bureau  Agents  in  this  State,  owing  to  the  inaccessi¬ 
bility  of  their  stations  ;  but  confined  our  inspection  mainly  to  districts  the  headquar¬ 
ters  oi  whiSh  are  at  Columbia,  Charleston,  and  Hamburg.  The  number  of  officers  and 
persons  employed  by  and  attached  to  the  Bureau  in  South  Carolina,  are  : 

One  Brigadier  General,  Assistant  Commissioner  of  Bureau. 

Staff  of  Assistant  Commissioner — One  Lieutenant  Colonel,  one  Major,  six  Captains, 
one  Lieutenant,  one  Chaplain  and  Bureau  Missionary. 

On  duty  as  Sub- Assistant  Commissioners  of  the  Bureau — One  Colonel,  two  Lieutenant 
Colonels,  four  Majors,  seven  Captains,  six  First  Lieutenants,  one  Second  Lieutenant. 

On  Staff  Duty  Elsewhere  thorn  at  Bureau  Headquarters — Three  Lieutenants. 

Medical  Department— Three  Surgeons,  United  States  Voludteers,  thirteen  Assistant 
Surgeons. 

CITIZEN'  EMPLOYEES. 


Nine  clerks,  at  average  pay  each  per  month .  .  $108  33 

One  rental  agent,  at  monthly  pay  of .  75  00 

One  clerk,  at  monthly  pay  of .  50  00 

One  storekeeper,  at  monthly  pay  of . , .  85  00 

One  counsellor,  at  monthly  pay  of . 125  00 

One  superintendent  of  education,  at  monthly  pay  of .  150  00 

One  printer,  at  monthly  pay  of . 100  00 

One  contract  surgeon,  at  monthly  pay  of .  100  00 

Twenty-five  laborers,  at  average  pay  per  month . . .  10  20 


In  the  above  list  of  officers  in  the  military  service,  on  duty  in  the  Bureau  in  South* 
Carolina,  brevet  rank  is  omitted,  in  order  that  the  pay  of  each  may  be  determined  by 
the  rank  as  there  stated. 

The  number  of  Freedmen  to  whom  rations  have  been  issued  in  the  Department  of 
South  Carolina  during  each  month  since  the  first  of  December,  1865,  is  : 


Men. 

Women. 

Children. 

Total. 

December . . . 

.  2,430 

3,612 

2,325 

8,367 

January . . . 

.  2,560 

3,841 

625 

7,026 

February . . . . 

733 

1,876 

664 

3,273 

March . 

.  816 

2,120 

1,012 

3,948 

April . . . . . 

804 

1  742 

1,141 

3  777 

The  number  of  refugees  to  whom  rations  have 

been  issued,  is  : 

/ 

Men. 

Women. 

Children. 

Total. 

December . 

hr 

.  i 

42 

65 

114 

January . . . . 

7 

102 

192 

301 

February . 

30 

189 

247 

466 

March . . . 

24 

167 

340 

531 

April . 

48 

267 

431 

746 

It  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  above  that  Brevet  Major  General  Scott,  the  present 
Commissioner  of  the  Bureau,  upon  entering  upon  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  greatly 
reduced  the  issue  of  rations  to  Freedmen.  The  supplies  furnished  consisted  of  pork 
or  bacon,  fresh  beef,  flour  or  soft  bread,  hard  bread,  corn  meal,  beans,  peas  and  homi¬ 
ny,  sugar,  vinegar,  candles,  soap,  salt,  and  pepper.  The  reduction  of  the  issue  of 
rations  by  General  Scott,  since  taking  charge  of  the  affairs  of  the  Bureau  ia  South 
Carolina,  clearly  indicates,  in  our  judgment,  that  his  predecessor,  General  Saxton, 
issued  a  much  larger  number  of  rations  than  would  have  been  required  had  he  pur¬ 
sued  the  wise  policy,  since  inaugurated  by  General  Scott,  of  employing  proper  means 
to  induce  the  Freedmen  to  labor,  instead  of  encouraging  them  to  depend  on  the  Gov¬ 
ernment  for  support.  We  think  there  will  be  no  necessity  for  the  issue  after  the 
prerent  season,  if  the  policy  of  General  Scott  is  carried  out. 

Faithful  and  efficient  agents  of  the  Bureau,  who  have  confined  themselves  to  their 
legitimate  functions,  have  been  aided  in  the  discharge  of  their  duties  by  the  citizens 
of  South  Carolina,  while  incompetent  and  meddlesome  agents,  wherever  located,  have 
aroused  hitter  feelings  and  encountered  opposition  from  the  white  people. 

A  very  wholesome  and  acceptable  reform  in  the  administration  of  the  Bureau  in  this 
Department,  and  one  that  will  result  in  a  considerable  reduction  of  its  expenses, 
would  be  to  discontinue  the  citizen  agents  and  instruct  the  military  officers  on  duty  in 
the  State  to  perform  such  offices  as  may  be  required  by  the  Bureau  during  its 
existence. 


/ 


10 


It  is  very  apparent  that  such  employes  as  “Bureau  Missionary,”  “  Bureau  Counsel¬ 
lor,”  “  Bureau  Printer,”  and  Bureau  Storekeeper.”  can  he  dispensed  with  without 
detriment  to  either  the  Government  or  Freedmen. 

COLUMBIA  DISTRICT. 

The  first  point  in  South  Carolina  where  we  commenced  our  investigation  was  at 
Columbia.  There  we  found  Brevet  Brig.  Gen.  Ely,  Sub  Assistant  Commissioner  of  the 
Bureau,  who  has  charge  of  a  district  which  embraces  an  indefinite  number  of  counties. 

We  were  unable  to  obtain  from  him  a  statement  of  the  extent  of  territory  over  which 
he  presided,  for  the  reason  that  he  himself  did  not  know  the  limits  of  his  jurisdiction. 

This  officer  is  quite  extensively  engaged  in  the  cultivation  of  plantations.  His  planting 
interest  in  the  vicinity  of  Columbia  required  so  much  of  his  time,  that,  in  one  instance 
at  least,  he  found  that  he  had  seriously  neglected  the  proper  duties  of  his  office.  Gen. 

Ely  stated  that  he  was  cultivating  two  plantations  on  Government  account,  leased  by 
himself,  as  Bureau  agent,  at  a  cash  rent  of  $5,000  a  year.  On  three  other  plantations 
he  stated  that  he  had  put  freedmen  to  work  and  furnished  them  with  Government 
rations,  which  were  paid  for  out  of  their  crops.  One  of  these  plantations,  he  afterwards 
said,  had  been  rented  by  Wm.  Shepley,  of  the  25th  infantry,  who  had  been  a  clerk  in 
his  office.  He  CGen.  Ely)  had  put  the  freedmen  to  work  on  the  plantation  while 
Shepley  was  away  at  his  home,  and  had  promised  to  give  them  one-half  of  the  crop. 

A  delegation  of  freedmen  subsequently  called  on  us  and  stated  that  in  addition  to 
the  two  plantations  which'General  Ely  was  cultivating  on  Government  account,  he  was 
also  planting  on  his  own  account  the  farms  of  Robert  Joiner  and  A.  M.  Hunt.  This 
delegation  further  stated  that  twenty-nine  colored  persons,  men,  women,  and  children, 
suffering  from  the  small-pox,  were  crowded  into  one  room,  about  twenty  feet  by  twenty- 
four  in  size,  and  placed  on  the  bare  floor,  with  no  bedding,  while  their  only  covering 
was  the  blankets  they  had  brought  with  them.  These  poor  creatures  were  left  in  this 
condition  several  days,  some  of  them  delirious,  with  only  one  black  woman  to  attend 
them,  and  without  any  nourishment  but  meat  and  bread.  A  number  of  respectable 
old  colored  people,  attacked  with  the  small-pox,  were  thus  taken  from  their  comfortable 
homes  and  placed  in  this  room  to  die  of  neglect.  One  of  this  delegation  assured  us 
that  he  called  to  see  General  Ely  on  several  different  days  to  inform  him  of  the  suffering 
condition  of  the  freedmen  in  the  small-pox  hospital,  and  was  told  on  each  occasion 
that  the  General  could  not  be  seen,  as  he  was  absent  attending  to  his  plantations?  Th  s 
neglect  of  duty  by  General  Ely  was  complained  of  in  a  letter  written  by  Beverly  Nash, 
a.  colored  man,  and  published  in  a  Charleston  paper  devoted  to  the  interest  of  the 
freedmen.  After  the  publication  of  this  letter,  General  Ely  told  Nash  he  did  not  like 
to  have  such  statements  made  about  him,  and  wished  the  freedmen  to  get  up  somt 
resolutions  denying  the  truth  of  the  allegations  preferred,  which  they  refused  to  do. 

We  examined  a  contract  between  a  planter  and  freedman,  which  is  on  file  in  General 
Ely’s  office,  and  herewith  forwarded.  If  this  contract  is  to  be  regarded  as  evidence  of 
the  condition  of  the  freedmen  under  charge  of  General  Ely,  they  are  certainly  very 
little  better  off  than  they  were  while  in  slavery.  The  system  of  labor  established  by 
this  contract  is  at  best  a  system  of  peonage, 

CHARLESTON  DISTRICT. 

From  Columbia  we  proceeded  to  Charleston,  the  headquarters  of  the  Bureau  for 
South  Carolina,  where  we  met  Brigadier  General  R.  K.  Scott,  the  Assistant  Commis¬ 
sioner.  We  found  him  to  be  an  energetic  and  competent  officer,  laboring  to  correct 
the  mistakes  and  blunders  of  his  predecessors.  Although  lie  lias  been  on  duty  but  a 
short  time,  he  has  produced  a  marked  change  for  the  better  in  the  administration  of 
affairs  of  the  Bureau.  We  called  at  his  office  for  the  purpose  of  examining  the  records  f 
of  the  Bureau,  but  we  were  informed  that  all  the  books,  papers,  records,  and  documents 
pertaining  to  the  affairs  of  the  freedmen  from  the  establishment  of  the  Bureau,  and 
all  records  relating  to  the  administration  of  the  Bureau  in  South  Carolina  from  its 
organzatiion  to  the  time  of  General  Scott’s  assuming  charge  of  affairs,  had  be  carried 
off  by  General  Saxton,  and  that  he  had  left  only  a  file  of  his  own  general  orders  in  the  * 
office.  General  Saxton  gave  as  a  reason  for  this  proceeding  that  it  was  necessary  for  him 
to  have  the  books  and  records  “to  make  him  all  right  at  Washington.”  In  the  absence 
of  official  documents  we  were  unable  to  institute  any  close  examination  into  the  con¬ 
duct  of  the  officers  of  the  Bureau  who  had  been  on  duty  in  South  Carolina  previous 
to  General  Scott’s  administration,  and  we  could  only  judge  of  their  conduct  by  the 
condition  in  which  we  found  the  freedmen  in  those  places  where  the  policy  of  General 
Saxton  had  been  fully  carried  out,  and  where  its  effects  were  still  apparent.  Reason¬ 
ing  from  these  data,  we  are  convinced  that  the  operation  of  the  Bureau  on  the  freedmen 


11 


in  respect  to  their  habits  and  desposition  to  labor  and  support  themselves,  under  the 
administration  of  General  Saxton,  was  exceedingly  pernicious,  especially  on  the  Sea 
Island,  to  which  we  will  allude  further  in  our  account  of  the  freedmen’s  settlements 
thereon,  on  the  seaboard. 

Chaplain  M.  trench,  United  btates  colored  troops,  Bureau  missionary  and  superin¬ 
tendent  of  marriage  relations,  and  Lieut.  L.  J.  Lott,  sub-assistant  commissioner,  having 
charge  of  a  freedmen’s  camp  at  Charleston,  are  in  partnership  with  Wm.  Hanehan,  of 
Charleston,  in  cultivating  a  plantation  on  Edisto  Island.  They  furnished  $1,500  in 
money  to  carry  on  the  plantation,  and  are  to  receive  half  the  net  profit  of  the 
undertaking.  They  purchase  supplies  in  Charleston,  and  forward  them  to  the  planta¬ 
tion.  Chaplain  French  explained  to  us  that,  in  making  the  agreement  with  Wm. 
Hanehan,  he  was  actuated  solely  by  a  desire  to  assist  him  to  furnish  labor  for  the 
poor  freedmen  ;  but  with  even  an  ordinary  crop,  he  will  not  receive  less  than  250  or 
300  per  cent,  on  the  money  advanced. 

When  we  called  the  attention  of  Gen.  Scott  to  the  planting  operations  of  Gen.  Ely, 
Chaplain  French,  and  Lieut.  Lott,  he  evinced  his  disapproval  of  this  action  of  these 
officers. 

Under  the  guidance  of  Gen.  Scott,  the  condition  of  the  freedmen  in  Charleston  has 
been  very  much  improved,  and  the  bad  feeling  which  had  grown  up  between  the 
whites  and  blacks  under  the  former  administration  is  gradually  wearing  away.  Most 
of  the  freedmen  are  now  at  work  and  receive  good  wages. 

We  visited  the  Edgefield  Court-House,  now  the  centre  of  the  district  of  which 
Lieutenant  Colonel  Devereaux  has  charge,  the  headquarters  of  which  are  at  Hamburg, 
on  the  Savannah  river,  opposite  the  city  of  Augusta,  Ga.  There  have  been  a  number 
of  brutal  outrages  committed  in  this  district  on  the  freedmen,  by  a  band  of  outlaws, 
who,  through  the  apparent  neglect  of  the  agent  of  the  Bureau,  or  the  inability  or  the 
unwillingness  of  the  citizens  to  bring  them  to  justice,  have  escaped  punishment,  and 
are  still  at  large.  A  number  of  intelligent  and  influential  citizens  in  Edgefield,  in  con¬ 
versation  with  us,  strongly  condemned  the  conduct  of  the  villians  who  had  murdered 
unoffending  freedmen.  These  citizens  stated  that  the  murders  were  committed  by  a 
band  of  men  from  the  States  of  Texas,  Kentucky,  and  Tennessee,  who  had  been  in  the 
rebel  army,  and  were  prevented  by  their  crimes  from  returning  to  their  respective 
homes,  and  who  had  taken  to  the  road  for  a  livelihood,  and  were  stealing  horses  from 
white  people,  and  robbing  and  murdering  colored  men  because  they  were  defenceless. 
We  asked  the  citizens  why  they  were  not  arrested  by  the  civil  authorities.  Their  re¬ 
ply  was  that  they  were  in  doubt  as  to  their  authority  to  act — that  the  Freedmen’s 
Bureau,  with  the  military  support,  was  the  superior  power,  claiming  exclusive 
authority  to  arrest  and  punish  persons  committing  outrages  on  freedmen,  and  that  as 
long  as  this  state  of  things  existed  they  were  powerless  to  punish  crimes  of  this 
character.  They  evinced  much  indignation  at  what  they  termed  the  injustice  of  a  por¬ 
tion  of  the  press  in  holding  them  accountable  for  crimes  and  barbarities  which  they  said 
were  as  revolting  to  them  as  to  any  other  portion  of  the  American  people,  while  the 
power  to  punish  the  perpetrators  was  withheld  from  them.  They  also  assured  us  with 
unanimity  that  hereafter,  although  their  civil  government  was  still  partially  paralyzed, 
every  effort  would  be  made  to  punish  all  persons  guilty  of  committing  outrages  on  freed¬ 
men. 

We  learned  that  six  or  seven  freedmen  had  been  murdered  by  the  band  of  outlaws 
referred  to,  during  the  months  of  March  and  April,  and,  although  a  month  had  elapsed 
since  the  last  of  these  crimes  was  committed,  and  action  had  been  taken  by  General 
Sickles,  the  investigation  of  the  same  was  commenced  by  the  Bureau  agent  only  a  few 
days  since,  and  is  now  progressing  at  Hamburg,  thirty  miles  from  the  scene  of  the 
murders.  We  earnestly  hope  that  these  murderers  may  be  brought  to  justice. 

SEA  ISLANDS. 

On  the  13tli  of  May  we  left  Charleston  by  steamer,  and  visited  first  the  Sea  Islands 
on  the  coast  of  South  Carolina,  which  have  been,  and  still  are,  with  the  islands  on  the 
coast  of  Georgia,  under  the  exclusive  control  of  the  Bureau.  There  are  on  these 
islands  one  hundred  and  forty-one  valid  possessory  titles  to  land  held  by  freedmen, 
under  the  order  of  General  Sherman.  They  encumber  thirty-two  plantations,  situated 
on  James,  Johns,  Wadmalan,  and  Edisto  islands.  The  number  of  freedmen  now  on 
all  the  South  Carolina  islands  is  about  thirty  thousand.  They  form,  however,  but  a 
small  proportion  of  the  aggregate  number  who  have  occupied  the  islands  since  General 
Sherman’s  order  was  issued  ;  many  of  those  who  first  came  here  remained  on  the  island 
but  a  short  time,  and  then  returned  to  their  homes  on  the  main  land.  Others  who 
made  small  crops  gathered  them  in,  and  left  to  seek  more  profitable  employment.  A 


12 


large  majority  of  the  freedmen  who  still  remain  on  the  islands  are  in  destitute  circum- 
staneces.  On  Wadmalan  and  Edisto  islands,  many  who  are  cultivating  lands  for  them¬ 
selves  would  be  compelled  to  abandon  their  crops  were  it  not  for  the  provisions  fur¬ 
nished  by  the  planters.  Last  season  Government  rations  and  clothing  were  furnished 
to  most  of  the  freedmen,  who  were  working  on  their  own  account,  with  the  agreement 
that  they  should  afterward  pay  for  these  supplies  furnished  out  of  the  proceeds  of  their 
crops,  but  none  of  the  outlays  thus  incurred  have  been  repaid.  We  found,  on  inquiry, 
that  some  of  the  freedmen  raised  good  crops,  and  could  easily  have  reimbursed  the  Gov¬ 
ernment  for  the  supplies  provided  for  them,  but  most  of  them  were  swindled  out  of  all 
they  made  by  a  gang  of  white  sharpers  who,  pretending  to  be  their  friends,  gained  per¬ 
mission  to  come  upon  the  islands  and  set  up  stores,  provided  with  sweetmeats,  cheap 
jewelry,  and  worthless  articles  of  dress,  with  which  they  plundered  these  poor  creatures 
of  their  hard  earnings.  The  same  class  of  persons  who  thus  defrauded  the  freedmen 
last  year  have  made  extensive  preparations  to  secure  this  season’s  crop  by  the  same 
means.  We  found  a  number  of  their  stores  on  Edisto  and  Wadmalan  islands,  and  will 
mention  one  case  where  one  of  them  is  connected  with  a  plantation  as  an  example.  This 
store  is  on  a  farm  rented  and  cultivated  by  a  Mr.  Underwood,  of  Boston,  Massachusetts. 
Accompanied  by  General  Scott,  we  stopped  on  the  plantation  and  investigated  the  con¬ 
dition  of  the  freedmen  thereon  working  by  the  “task,”  which  is  precisely  the  same 
manner  in  which  their  former  owners  worked  them.  The  price  per  task  is  fifty  cents, 
which,  if  paid  in  money  or  its  equivalent,  would  be  fair  wages  ;  but,  in  lieu  of  money, 

tickets  were  given  them,  on  which  was  printed  “  Good  for  - in  provisions  at  our 

store.”  These  tickets  were  taken  up  bv  the  storekeeper,  with  corn  at  $3  per  bushel, 
and  other  articles  at  similarly  exorbitant  prices.  There  was  no  meat  in  the  shop.  The 
freed  people  gathered  around  us  while  we  were  there,  and  complained  bitterly  of  their 
treatment,  stating  that  with  the  wages  paid  them  they  were  unable  to  earn  enough  to 
buy,  at  the  prices  charged,  their  necessary  subsistence.  If  these  freedmen  were  paid 
in  money  for  their  labor  they  could  escape  the  extortions  of  the  shopkeeper,  but  with 
the  tickets  issued  to  them  they  are  compelled  to  pay  the  prices  charged  and  take  what¬ 
ever  the  storekeeper  sees  fit  to  give  them.  Competition,  which  would  greatly  reduce 
the  price  of  provisions,  is  prevented,  at  least  on  this  plantation,  by  military  orders. 

Mr.  Tolls,  on  an  adjacent  plantation,  was  selling  corn  to  t^.ese  people  at  $2  per  bushel, 
and  taking  Underwood  tickets  in  payment,  but  he  was  compelled  to  desist  by  special 
order. 

Major  J.  E.  Edwards,. sub-assistant  commissioner  for  the  islands,  stated  that  his  at¬ 
tention  had  been  called  to  some  difficulty  among  the  freedmen  on  Underwood’s  planta¬ 
tion,  which  he  had  investigated  and  found  the  freedmen  in  fault.  He,  therefore, 
required  the  freedmen  to  resume  work,  and  notified  them  that  if  they  did  not  do  so  he 
would  arrest  them.  An  examination  led  us  to  a  different  conclusion  from  that  arrived 
at  by  Major  Edwards.  In  our  opinion  the  condition  and  treatment  of  the  freedmen  on 
Underwood’s  plantation  fully  justified  them  in  refusing  to  work. 

Near  the  plantation  rented  and  worked  by  Mr.  Underwood  is  one  owned  by  Mr.  Jen¬ 
kins,  on  which  an  opposite  mode  of  treatment  is  pursued.  The  freed  people  here  were 
working  three  days  out  of  the  week  for  wages — fifty  cents  a  task,  paid  in  corn  at  two 
dollars  per  bushel,  and  bacon  at  twenty-five  cents  per  pound — and  during  the  remain¬ 
der  of  the  week  they  were  allowed  to  cultivate  for  themselves  as  much  as  they  could 
manage,  the  land  being  given  them  by  Mr.  Jenkens  free  of  rent. 

On  the  Baynord  plantation,  on  Edisto  Island,  the  following  circumstances  were  brought 
to  our  knowledge  :  This  farm  was  being  cultivated  by  freedmen  on  their  own  account, 
partly  under  their  land  grants,  and  partly  without.  On  the  12th  of  May  last,  when 
the  crops  had  all  been  planted  and  the  cotton  was  being  hoed,  a  man  from  New  York 
named  Holton  came  on  the  farm  with  a  squad  of  colored  soldiers  under  charge  of  a 
sergeant,  and  compelled  the  freedmen  to  contract  with  him  to  cultivate  the  land  for 
his  benefit.  What  the  exact  terms  of  this  contract  were  none  of  the  freedmen  knew.  • 

Some  believed  that  they  were  to  get  a  third  of  the  crop,  while  others  stated  that  they 
were  to  receive  only  one  fourth,  and  were  to  pay  $5  each  month  for  the  rent  of  their  f 

cabins.  Mr.  Holton  was  not  on  the  plantation  at  the  time  of  our  visit,  and  we  were 
consequently  unable  to  ascertain  the  true  nature  of  the  contract,  no  copy  of  it  having 
been  left  with  the  freedmen.  We  called  the  attention  of  the  assistant  commissioner  to 
the  complaints  of  the  freedmen  on  this  plantation. 

Chaplain  French,  Bureau  missionary,  and  Rev.  C.  Brodwell,  ('colored,  J  Edisto  Island, 
stated  to  us  that  a  similar  occurrence  had  taken  place  on  the  plantation  rented  by  a 
gentleman  recently  mustered  out  of  the  United  States  service,  when  the  freedmen,  after 
planting  their  crops,  had  been  dispossessed  and  forcibly  compelled  to  sign  a  contract, 
a  squad  of  colored  soldiers  having  been,  used  for  that  purpose. 


13 


While  on  Edisto  Island,  we  visited  Mr.  Edding’s  plantation,  which  is  being  culti¬ 
vated  by  freed  men  exclusively,  working  under  the  direction  of  one  of  their  own  num¬ 
ber,  a  superintendent  chosen  by  themselves.  Here  the  people  are  apparently  doing 
well,  and  have  a  fair  prospect  of  a  good  crop.  This,  however,  is  almost  the  only  in¬ 
stance  we  met  with  on  any  of  the  islands  where  the  freedmen,  cultivating  exclusively 
for  themselves,  without  the  direction  of  whites,  were  doing  even  tolerably  well. 

W e  visited  other  plantations  besides  those  named  above  on  Edisto  and  Wadmalan, 
but  mention  these  only  as  a  fair  index  of  the  condition  of  things  generally  on  those 
islands. 

There  are  no  land  grants  under  General  Sherman’s  order  on  Port  Royal  Island  ;  but- 
the  freed  people  hold  and  are  cultivating  a  considerable  portion  of  this  island  under 
tax  titles.  Some  of  them  made  their  third  crop,  last  season  on  these  lands  ;  but,  not¬ 
withstanding  the  advantage  thus  enjoyed,  they  are  nearly  all  of  them  now  in  destitute 
circumstances.  Their  present  impoverished  condition  is  attributed  to  the  fact  that  their 
crops  were  purchased  by  Beaufort  storekeepers  and  others  at  merely  nominal  rates,  in 
most  instances  at  less  than  at  a  fourth  of  their  real  value.  These  thrifty  traders, 
many  of  whom  made  their  advent  in  Beaufort  with  the  army,  purchased  the  Sea  Island 
cotton  of  the  freedmen  at  ten  cents  per  pound  in  the  seed,  and  have  this  season  already 
secured  mortgages  to  a  large  proportion  of  the  freedmen’s  crop,  in  some  instances  even 
on  their  lands. 

GEORGIA. 


SAVANNAH,  GA.,  AND  THE  ISLANDS. 


After  visiting  the  South  Carolina  islands  we  proceeded  to  Savannah,  Georgia,  where 
we  were  joined  by  Brevet  Major  General  David  Tilson,  assistant  commissioner  of  the 
Bureau  for  Georgia.  He  accompanied  us  on  our  visit  to  the  Sea  Islands  under  his 
charge.  Our  first  investigation  was  on  St.  Catherine’s  Island.  There  has  been  much 
confusion  and  disorder  here,  occasioned  by  Rev.  Tunis  J.  Campbell,  a  colored  man 
from  Nova  Scotia,  who  was  located 'on  the  island  by  General  Saxton  as  an  agent  of  the 
Bureau.  This  man  abolished  allthe  simple  rules  and  regulations  adopted  by  the 
freedmen  for  their  own  guidance,  and  established  instead  a  parody  of  the  United  States 
Government,  putting  himself  in  the  position  of  President,  and  assuming  in  addition 
dictatorial  powers.  Under  his  administration  the  freedmen  were  armed,  no  white  man 
was  allowed  to  land  on  the  island,  and  every  effort  was  made  to  stir  up  feelings  of  ani¬ 
mosity  against  the  white  race.  Among  other  powers  assumed  by  Campbell,  he  issued 
land  grants,  claiming  to  do  so  “  by  virtue  of  the  authority  vested  in  him  by  the  Presi¬ 
dent  of  the  United  States  and  General  Saxton,”  and  took  especial  care  to  bestow  the 
best  allotments  on  himself  and  relations. 

The  oonduct  of  this  man  had  a  most  prejudicial  influence  on  the  freedmen,  and 
placed  them  for  a  time  entirely  beyond  the  control  of  the  assistant  commissioner  for 
Georgia.  On  his  first  visit  to  the  island  General  Tillson  discovered  that  prompt  inter¬ 
vention  was  necessary  for  the  interests  of  the  freedmen  themselves,  as  their  lands 
were  being  nncnltivated,  and  they  were  not  far  removed  from  absolute  want.  With 
much  difficulty  he  obtained  a  hearing  from  them,  and  succeeded  in  restoring  order  and 
getting  them  to  work,  and  abolishing  the  absurd  form  of  government  established  by 
Campbell.  General  Tillson  ascertained  that  of  the  whole  number  of  land  grants  on  the 
island,  seventeen  only  were  valid.  These  grants  covered  515  acres,  and  were  scattered 
ail  over  the  island.  He  consolidated  them  so  as  to  occupy  one  section  of  the  island 
only,  leaving  the  remainder  fcr  cultivation  by  the  proper  owners.  There  are  at  present 
625  freedmen  on  this  island  ;  of  these  147  are  working  for  Messrs.  Winchester  &  Schuy¬ 
ler,  of  New  York,  who  have  rented  a  part  of  the  Ordbury  plantation,  and  the  remainder 
are  cnltivating  land  on  their  own  account.  The  147  freedmen  working  for  Win¬ 
chester  k  Schuyler  have  planted  350  acres  of  cotton  and  115  of  corn  ;  the  475  freed¬ 
men  working  for  themselves  have  planted  200  acres  of  cotton  and  200  acres  of  corn. 

From  St.  Catharine’s  we  went  to  Sapelo  Island,  which  is  cultivated  exclusively  by 
Messrs.  Dickson  &  McBride.  The  Freedmen  here  are  working  the  land  for  two-thirds 
of  the  crop,  and,  so  far  as  we  could  perceive,  were  well  treated  and  cared  for,  and  will 

make  money  if  they  oan  be  protected  from  the  bad  influence  of  a  bad  man  named - , 

who  came  among  them  last  year  with  a  permit  from  Captain  Ketchum,  Bureau  Agent 
under  General  Saxton,  bought  their  cotton  at  ten  cents  per  pound  in  the  seed,  and  paid 
them  mainly  in  whiskey.  This  vicious  man  has  exerted  such  an  evil  influence  over 
these  Freedmen  as  to  make  them  dissatisfied  with  an  exceedingly  liberal  contract. 

On  St.  Simon’s  Island  there  are  eighteen  valid  land  grants  encumbering  four  planta¬ 
tions.  There  are  between  five  and  six  hundred  Freedmen  on  the  Island,  most  of  whom 
are  working  for  wages,  are  well  led,  and  appear  to  be  perfectly  contented.  On  two  of 


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14- 


Bureau  Agent  that  these  Freedmen  relied  confidently  on  being  fairly  dealt  with  by 
their  employers.  Our  visit  to  this  Island  satisfied  us  that  the  Freedmen  there  were 
doing  exceedingly  well. 

OGEECHEE  RIVER  SETTLEMENT. 

This  settlement,  embracing  originally  several  hundred  freed  people,  the  largest 
colony  on  the  coast  under  General  Sherman’s  order,  was  last  year  under  the  control  of 
Rev.  Mr.  Tiffany,  an  agent  of  the  Bureau,  appointed  to  that  position  by  General  Sax¬ 
ton.  If  the  records  kept  by  General  Saxton  were  within  our  reach,  we  could,  without 
doubt,  obtain  official  information  as  to  the  workings  of  this  settlement,  but,  in  the 
absence  of  the  records,  we  can  only  report  such  facts  as  are  within  the  knowledge  of 
General  Tillson  and  other  officers  on  duty  in  the  Department. 

On  taking  charge  of  this  settlement,  Mr.  Tiffany  hired  twenty-five  Freedmen  as  a 
guard,  armed  with  United  States*  muskets,  and  used  them  to  prevent  any  white  man 
entering  the  settlement.  Seven  United  States  officers,  who  had  not  Mr.  Tiffany’s  pass, 
were  halted  and  refused  the  use  of  the  Government  boat  to  cross  the  Ogeechee  river. 
This  guard  of  twenty-five  men,  who  served  the  entire  season,  were  to  be  paid  out  of 
the  proceeds  of  the  Rice  Crop  raised  by  Freedmen  of  the  settlement.  Mr.  Tiffany  gave 
them  certificates  for  the  amount  due  them,  which  certificates  they  still  hold,  but  are 
unable  to  get  either  rice  or  money. 

All  the  freed  people  of  this  colony  were  supplied  through  the  season  with  Govern¬ 
ment  rations,  which  were  to  be  paid  for  out  of  their  crops.  We  were  informed  by  the 
Bureau  Officers  of  the  Department  that  none  of  these  rations  have  ever  been  repaid. 
A  very  considerable  crop  of  rice  was  made  by  the  Freedmen,  and  Mr.  Tiffany,  the  agent, 
advertised  sixty  thousand  bushels  of  it  for  sale.  '  General  Tillson,  who  had  in  the 
interim  assumed  charge  of  the  Bureau  in  Georgia,  seeing  the  advertisement,  ordered 
the  sale  to  be  suspended,  and  notified  Tiffany  that  only  bonded  officers  were  authorized 
to  sell  Government  property.  What  disposition  was  eventually  made  of  the  Rice  Crop, 
or  who  received  the  profits  of  it,  we  were  unable  to  ascertain.  Mr.  Tiffany  shortly 
after  this  retired,  whether  voluntarily  or  otherwise,  can  only  be  determined  by  the 
records,  which  are  not  within  our  reach.  Most  of  the  freed  people  of  the  settlement 
became  disheartened,  and,  voluntarily  abandoning  their  land  grants,  are  now  working 
under  contract  for  the  former  owners  of  the  land,  or  the  persons  who  have  rented 
plantations  from  land  owners. 

We  have  mentioned  these  particular  cases  as  indicating  the  condition  of  the  Freed¬ 
men  occupying  the  Sea  Islands  and  the  Coast  under  General  Sherman’s  order.  Our 
personal  observations,  the  evidence  we  have  taken,  and  the  inquiries  we  have  been 
obliged  to  make  to  supply  the  place  of  records,  have  convinced  us  that  the  condition 
of  the  Freedmen  of  these  settlements,  while  in  charge  of  General  Saxton,  was  such  as  to 
give  but  little  hope  that,  under  the  policy  pursued  by  that  officer,  they  would  ever 
become  self-supporting,  even  with  the  fertile  lands  on  which  they  are  located  placed  at 
their  disposal  free  from  rent  and  taxes.  The  failure  of  General  Saxton’s  administra¬ 
tion  resulted  from  a  variety  of  causes,  among  which  may  be  enumerated : 

The  unnecessary  continuance  of  Government  support  to  the  Freedmen,  which  tended 
to  increase  their  natural  improvidence  and  to  encourage  habits  of  idleness. 

Keeping  them  under  such  guardianship  and  tutelage  that  they  were  disinclined  to 
make  proper  exertions  for  their  own  support  or  improvement. 

Teaching  them  to  distrust  all  white  men  but  those  who  had  immediate  authority  over 
them,  or  who  came  among  them  with  passes  from  the  Bureau,  thus  preparing  them  to 
fall  an  easy  prey  to  the  sharpers  who  afterwards  obtained  access  to  them  under  the 
guise  of  friendship,  taking  advantage  of  their  credulity,  and  fraudulently  appropriat¬ 
ing  their  crops.  '  ^ 

Their  inexperience  in  providing  for  their  own  support,  and  in  managing  business  for 
themselves. 

It  is  not  in  the  power  of  Generals  Tillson  or  Scott,  until  a  crop  has  been  raised  under 
tlieir  respective  administrations,  to  materially  improve  the  condition  of  the  freedmen 
on  the  Sea  Islands.  Although  these  officers  have  effected  salutary  reforms  in  the  con¬ 
ditions  of  the  blacks,  and  their  disposition  to  labor,  and  have  been  instrumental  in 
removing  from  their  minds  many  of  the  absurd  ideas  which  had  been  instilled  among 
them,  idleness,  discord,  and  bitter  prejudices  against  the  white  people  still  exist.  The 
extent  to  which  they  were  deluded  by  the  few  white  men  who  had  intercourse  with 
them  is  almost  incredible.  Among  the  evidence  taken  in  reference  to  their  condition, 
and  which  bears  directly  on  this  point,  is  the  statement  of  a  distinguished  general 
officer,  who  was  in  command  of  a  district  embracing  part  of  the  Islands,  as  follows  : 

“I  assumed  command  in  January,  1865,  of  a  district  in  which  the  South  Carolina 
Sea  Islands  were  included.  They  were  then  in  a  state  of  turmoil  and  confusion, 


15 


•amounting  to  almost  open  rebellion.  Armed  patrols  were  maintained  on  the  Island  to 
prevent  any  white  man  from  landing.  Several  gentlemen  from  Pennsylvania  who 
attempted  to  land  ("improperly,  I  must  say)  were  arrested  by  the  freedmen.  I  had 
placed  a  guard  on  each  wharf  to  prevent  their  being  molested,  but  they  chose  to  make 
a  landing  on  a  part  of  the  Island  where  no  guard  was  stationed.  The  negroes  had 
been  told  and  believed  that  a  large  force  of  rebel  cavalry  still  occupied  the  woods  on 
the  mainland.  Utter  lawlessness  prevailed,  and  cattle-stealing  raids  on  the  mainland 
by  the  negroes  were  of  frequent  occurence.  I  went  over  and  broke  up  their  military 
bands,  and  told  them  the, war  was  over.  I  then  went  to  work  to  organize  a  system  of 
labor.  I  found  the  40-acre  allotments  under  General  Sherman’s  order  of  most  elastic- 
dimensions.  The  largest  I  saw  was  350  acres,  and  the  smallest  312  acres.  Many  freed¬ 
men  who  had  land  orders  for  John’s  Island  had  settled  on  James  Island,  and  certificates 
for  Edisto  Island  were  plentiful  on  Wadmalan  Island.  Scarcely  any  attempt  had  been 
made  to  cultivate  the  land.  There  were  not  more  than  two  acres  ‘listed  out’  in  any 
one  path  on  Edisto  Island.  I  had  to  discontinue  the  issue  of  rations  before  I  could  get 
them  to  work  at  all.  I  had  nearly  succeeded  in  getting  them  to  work  when  the  bill 
securing  their  land  titles  passed  Congress,  and  everything  was  again  thrown  into  con¬ 
fusion.  Matters  are  now,  however,  getting  straight  again.” 

An  impartial  comparison  of  the  comparative  condition  of  the  freedmen  on  the  South 
Carolina  Islands  and  those  in  Florida  and  Southwest  Georgia  clearly  demonstrates  that 
the  freed  people  who  have  remained  on  the  plantations,  and  have  been  aided  by  the 
advice  of  sensible  and  practical  military  and  Bureau  officers,  are  infinitely  better  off 
than  those  who  have  been  assisted  with  rations  and  clothing  by  the  Government. 

In  our  opinion,  the  most  equitable  solution  of  the  question  of  the  occupation  of  the 
Sea  Islands  and  the  coast  under  Gen.  Sherman’s  order  will  be  to  surrender  the  lands 
to  the  former  owners,  on  the  1st  day  of  January  next,  requiring  the  land  owners  to 
pay  to  the  freedmen  the  value  in  money  of  all  improvements  made  by  them  while,  occu¬ 
pying  the  land — this  to  be  determined  by  a  commission  appointed  by  the  Government. 
Of  course  we  do  not  mean  by  this  to  interfere  with  any  of  the  freedmen  who  may  desire 
to  surrender  the  lands  they  are  now  occupying  at  any  time  before  that  date,  by  ar¬ 
rangement  between  themselves  and  the  owners  of  the  land.  Generals  Tillson  and 
Scott  both  concur  with  us  that  this  arrangement  will  give  general  satisfaction  to  both 
the  freedmen  and  landowners.  Should  the  recommendation  be  adopted  by  the  Gov¬ 
ernment,  we  respectfully  suggest  that  the  order  be  issued  before  the  1st  of  September 
next,  so  as  to  give  both  parties  ample  time  to  make  arrangements  for  the  next  season’s 
planting. 

FLORIDA. 

After  completing  our  investigation  of  the  Sea  Islands,  we  went  to  Fernandina,  Fla. 
Here  we  found  Captain  Leddy,  of  the  Volunteer  Reserve  Corps,  on  duty  as  agent  of  the 
Bureau,  having  charge  of  a  district  embracing  two  counties,  containing  1,000  freedmen. 
These  are  generally  at  work  lumbering  and  get  from  $20  to  $26  per  month  as  wages. 
Captain  Leddy  is  assisted  by  Major  Sclirearer,  formerly  an  officer  of  the  7th  Ohio 
infantry,  who  acts  as  an  agent  without  pay,  but  is  partially  compensated  by  receiving 
$5  fee  for  each  contract  drawn  up  and  approved.  Captain  Leddy  is  a  good,  judicious 
man,  who,  by  friendly  interference  and  good  advice,  has  settled  most  of  the  difficulties 
which  have  arisen  in  his  district  between  the  freedmen  themselves,  and  between  the 
whites  and  freedmen,  without  litigation. 

We  next  visited  Jacksonville,  the  headquarters  Of  Captain  Webster,  who  has  charge 
of  several  counties,  in  which  freed  people  are  generally  at  work  and  are  liberally  com¬ 
pensated. 

There  had  been  at  this  place,  a  few  days  before  our  visit,  much  bad  feeling  between 
he  white  and  colored  people,  produced  by  irritating  false  reports  circulated  by  vicious 
ersons,  but,  through  the  efforts  of  the  Governor  of  the  State,  the  Department  Com¬ 
mandant,  and  the  officers  of  the  Bureau,  harmony  and  mutual  confidence  had  been 
j  restored. 

We  next  visited  Tallahassee,  the  headquarters  of  the  Department  Commandant  and 
the  Assistant  Commissioner  of  the  Bureau  for  the  State,  from  whom  we  obtained  the 
following  statistics; 

1  major,  brevet  colonel,  assistant  commissioner. 

1  major,  staff  duty. 

3  captains,  staff  duty. 

5  captains,  sub-assistant  commissioners. 

3  first  lieutenants,  sub-assistant  commissioners. 

5  second  lieutenants,  sub-assistant  commissioners. 


16 


6  citizens  agents  and  subordinate  commissioners,  at  average  pay  per  month,  $125- 

1  assistant  superintendent  of  education  ;  pay  per  month,  $100. 

1  contract  surgeon  ;  pay  per  month,  $100. 

4  clerks  :  average  pay  per  month,  $88  50. 

8  nurses  for  hospital  and  1  messenger;  average  pay  per  month,  $14  30. 

In  giving  the  rank  of  the  officers  on  duty  in  the  Bureau,  the  brevet  rank  is  omitted, 
in  order  that  the  rank  may  indicate  the  amount  of  pay  drawn  by  each. 

The  number  of  rations  issued  by  the  officers  of  the  Bureau,  or  by  post  commander, 
on  request  of  the  assistant  commissioner  of  the  Bureau,  in  the  State  of  Florida,  since 
the  1st  of  December,  1865,  to  the  1st  of  May,  1866,  were  12.716,  valued  at  $2,023,25. 
The  average  monthly  issue  amounted  to  2,543.  Among  the  number  who  have  been 
receiving  rations  were  the  inmates  of  the  Orphan  Asylum,  located  at  Fernandina,  which 
is  under  the  charge  of  the  National  Freedmen’s  Aid  Association,  and  the  inmates  of  the 
Freedmen’s  Hospital,  at  Magnolia,  which  is  controlled  by  the  Bureau. 

The  assistant  commissioner  stated  that  rations  have  been  issued  only  to  the  inmates 
of  the  Asylum  and  Hospital,  and  in  some  isolated  cases,  when  the  circumstances  of  the- 
freedmen  show  actual  destitution  and  inability  to  provide  for  themselves  and  families. 
Some  of  the  rations  have  been  issued  upon  returns  signed  by  me,  by  post  commanders • 
not  connected  with  the  Bureau,  consequently  I  have  not  the  data  from  which  to  report 
the  number,  age,  and  the  sex  of  those  who  have  received  rations 

Brevet  Col.  T.  W.  Osborne,  the  assistant  commissioner  of  the  Bureau  for  Florida,  is 
an  intelligent  and  just  man,  and  an  energetic  and  impartial  officer.  The  most  favorable 
accounts  were  given  ns  by  citizens,  by  the  military  and  Bureau  officers,  and  by  the  freed' 
people,  of  the  good  condition  of  the  freedmen  in  this  department,  as  well  as  of  the 
encouraging  prospects  of  the  crops  which  they  are  cultivating. 

After  leaving  Tallahassee,  the  next  point  at  which  we  stopped  was  Monticello,  where 
there  are  several  plantations,  on  which  a  large  number  of  freedmen  are  employed 
working  for  one-third  of  the  crops.  Both  planters  tand  freedmen  are  satisfied,  and  all 
bear  testimony  to  the  wisdom  and  justice  of  the  administration  of  the  Bureau  by 
Col.  Osborne. 

Throughout  the  entire  State  the  military,  the  Bureau,  and  the  civil  authorities  are 
generally  acting  in  harmony,  which,  in  onr  opinion,  is  the  main  reason  why  the  freed¬ 
men  are  more  quiet,  orderly,  and  thrifty  here  than  they  are  in  localities  in  which 
there  is  antagonism  between  these,  powers.  The  only  exceptions  to  this  state  of 
things  in  Florida  is  at  Jacksonville,  the  cause  of  which  has  already  been  stated. 

Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servants, 

JAMES  B.  STEEDMAN,  Major  GeneraL 
J.  S.  FULLERTON,  Brevet  Brig.  Genetah 


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V 


